Romance on the London Eye........

Last Saturday we had out much hyped Impulse Romance Revolution on the London Eye!

Thirty-one lucky competition winners won a "Cupid's Capsule" on the London Eye which included their very own private capsule and a bottle of champagne; all overlooking the London skyline at night (the rain thankfully held off).

All this with travel and accommodation thrown in - can't be bad!

Romance was truly sparked with Impulse, enjoy a few of our favourite photos.








Love Laura x

V Festival, Sourz and Ann Summers

The V Festival seems like a distant memory... even though it was only two weekends ago! The Lounge Group went to V Festival in Stafford and Chelmsford with a super efficient team of promo staff to do some market research!

Well.... this was my first (and probably last!) experience camping. We had the brilliant idea of buying a pop up tent, cunning I hear you think - actually not so cunning. It was a two man tent, for very small people! The first night we ran out of air and couldn't breathe and the second night we discovered that our oh so cosy tent was not particularly waterproof - I was quite distressed!!

But on the upside, we saw some amazing bands, after we'd finished working obviously - The Feeling, Stereophonics, The Prodigy, Girls Aloud (my favourite), Sugarbabes to name a few. We also managed to accidentally somehow blag our way into the VIP area, much to our joy! We spent our days getting out hair done, had massages, got our make up done, indulged in the free food and drinks ;) and celeb spotted (one of my fave hobbies!) Our fab promo staff were absolutely brilliant and did a great job, so BIG thanks to them!!!

Next on our agenda is Sourz and Ann Summers!!

Sourz kicked off today with staff sourcing venues across the country to promote their Zing City events. Sourz is a yummy alcoholic drink which comes in many flavours!

We're helping to promote the new opening of the Ann Summers store in Marble Arch this Friday. I've spent hours slaving over pictures of beautiful girls and guys - I have such a hard life! Our fabulous team will be on Oxford Street handing out scratch cards, with the offer to win lots of brilliant Ann Summers goodies!


Gem x

QR Codes, will they won't they....

QR (Quick Response) codes are a going to be coming to the UK or so say people in the world of mobile.

What are they? They are a simple visual code, not unlike a barcode, which can be read by mobile phones. This one is for theloungegroup.com



In order to read the codes the mobiles need to have installed a piece of software, so to read the above go to http://reader.kaywa.com. At the moment not very many mobiles have the software on them and so the consumer is required to download it themselves. Not all that compelling.

So what is the benefit of QR codes? Well, once a mobile has “taken a picture” of the QR code, the QR will launch an internet or wap site. This then allows brands to give consumers more information about products or services. This information can take the form of data, video, music, web content or any combination of these. Because the QR code are as simple as barcodes they can be put on anything, from packaging to poster sites.

No doubt brands will want to put QR codes onto a large number of items as they make their marketing very accountable. It is possible to have a different QR code for each medium, or even for each product. In simple terms they are fundamentally not really that different to short codes, the difference is that they are cheaper to implement as there are far more combinations that you can generate.

So should you be sticking a QR code on everything? Well before you do you need to just stop and think, why would anyone want to see what I am showing them. As with any other medium content is king. Though no doubt consumers will "play" with the QR's at first once they become common you need to give them a real reason to bother.

Let's see how everyone gets on.

Addictive TV

No, I am not referring to Big Brother…Addictive TV is group of super cool VJ’s described by grandmaster flash as ‘next level s**t’. My Friday night got a little bit more memorable when we headed to the south bank for an impromptu outdoor party at the National Theatre and experienced the madness first hand! The exterior of the National Theatre was illuminated by the most random, eclectic and iconic array of movie clips ranging from Pulp Fiction & The Italian Job to some random black & white 60’s movies. Whether you are a movie or music fan or neither, these guys are undeniably an amazing creative force. They travel all over the world mixing it up for the massive. The music can get pretty hard, but is broken up with random and funny film interludes. Everyone was loving it… the weather was clear, the skyline looked picturesque, the crowd was cool and unpretentious, one of those nights where I remembered why I love London.

Check out the website, WARNING turn the volume down if you are at work, its Preeettty loud!!

B

X

http://www.myspace.com/addictivetv

http://www.myspace.com/addictivetv

News presented in Letters

At last we have sent out our Lounge newsletter. Crickey, isn't it strange how we always put off doing our own marketing/PR. I think all agencies do it; we're our own worst publicists. Everything always seems to come first.



I'm pleased to say we've overcome this barrier and have created something that hopefully you will have seen, and that has already received glowing reviews from our email distribution partner Campaign Monitor; they want to feature it on their site.

So if you have, did you like it? Do you want a copy if you didn't receive it? Please drop me an email/comment.

Right on to newsletter number 2.....

You Gotta Friend in Me

It's lucky I like my job really. I've recently started realising why my hairdresser friends roll their eyes if I dare to ask for a free cut, or my singing teacher friends start to sob if I bashfully enquire whether it's possible to get a quick lesson.

"But surely that's not possible if you work in PR" I hear you cry...oh contraire! It's completely possible if your mate from the pub happens to be the Marketing and PR director of my local.

TWO8SIX is a great little place in Lewisham which has a really great crowd of people, and...I'm ashamed to say, a really good karaoke night on Wednesdays (which I may possibly be at every week - I admit I'm a karaokoholic, there I said it!)

I started vaguely talking shop with my mate (the PR/Marketing Director) and throwing the odd idea out - and before you know it I'm writing press releases after work and consulting him on tactics for celeb endorsements.

But I don't mind. After all it's for a good cause. They're holding a weekend called "In the Pink" which is supporting Lisa Snowdon's organisation Breast Cancer Care - the UK's leading charity for those effected by Breast Cancer.

When it's such a good cause you don't mind lending a hand do you? - and hey that's what mates are for.

Cheers,

Paul

Play your cards right

With the current furore around the success of the GB Olympics Team, I was interested to hear a debate on the radio last night started by an online petition to get Poker to be introduced as an Olympic sport in London 2012.

The idea of sport generally conjures a mental picture of being out of breath, sweaty and a lovely shade of beetroot (or is that just me?) But these guys argued that Poker players need similar attributes to other sports men and women such as stamina, strategy and the strength of mind to out wit your opponent.


It does seem a bit unfair that the other athletes have to put in so much effort for their sports. One of the reasons our Olympic cycling team is so good is because they can withstand immense amounts of pain to push themselves to train even harder . Compare that with a poker player who can prepare by eating a junk food and drinking a beer...not exactly challenging yourself too much.

But, as poker's now the number one participation game in the world, attracting more and more players every day, particularly online, even sponsors are moving away from traditional sports like snooker and putting their money into poker. So, maybe it could happen.


It would be pretty amazing to win a gold medal in the Olympics, so even though I'm not entirely convinced it can be classed as a sport, I think given my poor record in all the others I've tried, poker could be be my best option if I ever want to win one... and I i don't even have to give up pizza!

Rain rain rain... GO AWAY! Who would ever remember to pack an umbrella to take to a festival??Yes, I forgot mine and I really regretted it!!Thank God for my yellow poncho!

I was saved by the vibrant and fun Tuaca Cabaret Lounge.. Great cocktails were served, burlesque dancers, artists from our discover campaign and energetic dj's put a closure to the Tuaca Cabaret Lounge each night.

Livorno cocktail or Tuscan Mule?? Decisions...

On Sunday, I woke up to realise that our tent was about to blow away and noticed that our neighbours had invaded our space... Not by choice! The wind had moved their tents early in the morning - COSY!

I departed on Monday and I have never looked so forward to my bed and shower!!

See you all there next year.. JS

P.S The famous wishing tree... My wish still hasn't come through!!

Cocktails and entertainment in Manchester

Hey there!

Reading previous blogs entries you may well be aware of one of our clients, Tuaca. Tuaca is a gorgeous Italian brandy liqueur which has actually been around for years but it's debut in the UK is a fairly recent thing....unless you've spent some time in Brighton. A lovely couple from Brighton found Tuaca when they were snowboarding in Colarado. Everyone was drinking it apres ski so they decided to be no different! They fell in love with the drink and brought it back to Brighton where they owned a bar and literally flooded Brighton with it. Since then Bacardi Brown Forman who now own the brand have brought us on board to get it out to the rest of the UK....and so we have.

Discover Tuaca is a nationwide campaign we've been running live since May. Sweeping the country with a one week drinks promotion in each of 7 carefully selected bars and pubs in 9 cities - the drinks promotion ends with a night of free live entertainment in each bar. The ethos of Tuaca is one I can personally really relate to so it's fantastic to work on something you feel so genuinely passionate about. Tuaca is all about something a little bit different and new, electic and down to earth so the artists that have been performing in each city are an assortment of some truly original entertainment.

This week our activity in Manchester and Belfast kicks off and with locally sourced talent from each city, it gives a real personal touch to the entertaiment and the vibe of the night. If you're in either of these cities in August or September, it's well worth checking out the list of bars and nights we're running and getting down to enjoy a few Tuaca cocktails http://www.tuaca.co.uk/ There's also a chance to win a holiday to Colorado just by visiting the site so it's certainly worth a virtual visit at the least.

To give you a glimpse of what's coming up in Manchester, check out these guys for a perfect demonstration of the quirky and hugely talented artists we've 'discovered' on our travels. They are fabulous - Dr Butlers Hatstand Medicine Band - if nothing else, the name delivers on the brief of electism http://www.myspace.com/drbutlershatstandmedicineband but I think you'll agree, these guys do have an edge playing an array of unconventional instruments from the washboard, jews-harp, spoons, ukulele, kazoo, jug, guitar, banjo, clarinet, harmonica, double bass and the piano

Tuaca is stocked in over 400 bars and pubs in London so look out for it and give it a whirl. The Tuscan Mule is my favourite and is perfect for summer drinking (if you can call this a summer) but it's good to get in the mood regardless. Bottoms up! Clare

Too cool for... applause!

Last night saw the launch party for Vice magazine's 'Sundae' issue at the Old Blue Last in Shoreditch. It was quite a trendy affair, with most of the attendees sporting vintage clothes, non-prescription thick-rimmed glassses, and asymmetrical haircuts.

Smiling and dancing were not on the agenda, and neither it seems was appreciation of the band on-stage. I had always assumed that a bit of clapping at the end of a song was par for the course (unless the band are really terrible - and even then a bit of an ironic cheer for the effort is usually in order.) But on this occasion the band in question - Three Vicars; a sort of mix of Busted and The Libertines - got nothing for their all their exuberrant endevour.

Perhaps the crowd were a little weary of showing approval in front of their fashionable peers at such an event, not wanted to be seen to endorse something that was not especially new or cool. It was a bit of a shame to see a fairly decent band toil away with no encouragement but it may be these inhospitable audiences that help build the character of a band. Nevertheless, me and my friends enjoyed ourselves and I expect that despite the awful name, the band will go on to big things as long as they steer clear of these type of events - although I got the feeling that they realised this towards the end of their set as their lead singer belted out a number called 'I don't wanna be like you' with a bit of a wry smile. Good luck to them.

Ed

Mr Giggs

After another manic Monday, I am getting into the rhythm of my work week. Last Friday gave rise to some rather exciting news; we now have football legend Ryan Giggs on board for our Premier 21 campaign. I keep getting flash backs of my younger days, where Ryan used to grace the covers of all the young girlie magazines such us Sugar and More. I think I actually saved the magazine poster to stick next to Christian Slater on my bedroom wall at one point. Cringe. Might not mention that when I meet him!! He was the Beckham before Beckham. Anyway through Alliance and Leicester (and of course us!) a group of lucky young people are going to spend a whole day with him, an amazing experience for all those avid footie fans! We are busily organising podcast, PR and photography for next week so will update the results! If you are interested in spending a day with Mr Giggs check out http://www.prem21.co.uk/

B x

Loungers put the Glam in Glamour:oke

It was that time of the month this week - yep, Glamour:oke time!

For those of you who are unsure, Glamour:oke is an event organised by EdenCanCan at PUNK nightclub, which does pretty much exactly what it says on the tin. It's karaoke with a bit of Glamour added to it by the venue and some of the D/E-list celebs who turn up.

This week, Mica Paris was judging and not one to be nepotistic, decided her daughter was definitely the best singer - personally I thought our very own Emily was up there with her fantastic rendition of I Need a Hero - I half expected her to start flying around the room fairy-godmother-in-shrek style!

Good fun was had by all, by old Loungers and new Loungers alike, and we would definitely recommend it to anyone - along with Punk which is a great venue, whether you just fancy a night out in London or want to organise a specific event - a launch or publicity event for example.

Thanks to Nick and all the guys at EdenCanCan,

Another great night!

Paul

The Emotions of Business

I absolutely love having my own business. If you get off on the thrills of life then having your own business has got to be up there as one of the most thrilling ways to spend your time. I can't think of anything else which can offer this emotional rollercoster.

This last 7 days has been no exception. We've had some nail biting moments but in this short time we've also had a fantastic few days, with some massive highs as we've won a fab new clothing retail client, a head to head pitch on a phone, and some new deo business. We've had fun and games with a Premiership footballer, had some new members join the team and been sad at seeing some long time loungers leave. We've won a legal dispute with a crazy client and started looking for a new home having out grown this one.

Clearly it's not always easy but, I am proud to say, we have a bloody great team here and when The Loungers are pulling together we can deliver some amazing results.

So this weekend if you want to see us in action and you are at The Bloom Festival please come and check us out. Our client Tuaca are going to be kicking up a storm at their Cocktail Tent, letting people Discover some amazing new talent.

A happy and bouncy James

Farewell to Fraser & Fleck...

Today The Lounge is a somber place, partly due to our collective hangover, but also because we are bidding farewell to Fleck & Fraser.

Last night witnessed their combined leaving do (starting in London Bridge before staggering on to Camden Town) From what I can recall it was all excellent fun, and a great send-off for the guys!


While I am a relative newcomer to the group, I have heard enough stories of the Fraser at V Festival, Fleck at 'brain-storming to the death' sessions and general campaign antics to make me realise that both will be sorely missed around these parts.

Luckily we have two great replacements stepping up in place of the outbound duo in Gemma and James, so best of luck to those them in their new roles.
We all hope that Fraser will remember us when he's famous, and that Fleck will take it easy at Bestival this year! Seriously though, we all wish them the best of luck in all the future and ask them to keep in touch and pop in from time to time...


Ed